Rocket City Rednecks

Sep 28, 2011

The Boys create an armored vehicle out of an old truck, and armor made of beer cans, then try to blow it up to see if they can create a bombproof pickup.

Sep 28, 2011

The Rednecks create a new type of rocket fuel with a hillbilly whiskey still; but can it fire off a monster model rocket, fueled only with moonshine?

Sep 28, 2011

The Rednecks aim to build a lightweight, bullet-proof suit that can augment human strength and fire weapons.

Sep 28, 2011

The guys turn their sights to underwater exploration -- building a homemade submarine out of a 4 x 4 plastic container farmers use to store fertilizer... and beer kegs, of course.

Oct 5, 2011

In his day job at the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command, Travis has explored ways to protect the Earth from collision with an asteroid, but outside the office he'll actually put some of these ideas to the test.

Oct 5, 2011

Most scientists think a manned mission to Mars would take at least one and a half years and billions of dollars, but Travis thinks it can be done faster and cheaper.

Oct 12, 2011

The Rednecks build a massive radio telescope out of junkyard parts, in an attempt to pick up signals from distant galaxies.

Oct 12, 2011

The Rednecks build a massive radio telescope out of junkyard parts, in an attempt to pick up signals from distant galaxies.

Oct 26, 2011

The team create a floating "alternate energy power plant" out of old car parts and a waterwheel that creates all the energy required for a "Redneck Rec Room."

Oct 26, 2011

The guys build a solar thermal rocket engine out of old satellite dishes to test out a free energy source that could travel between the stars - or power an old fishing boat.

Nov 2, 2011

Travis and the guys compete in NASA's Great Moonbuggy Race - an international competition to create a human-powered lunar vehicle designed to fit aboard a space capsule. Engineering teams around the world spend years designing entries but the Rednecks build theirs in one weekend. After all, Daddy did work on the original Apollo space program so they should have a leg up.

Nov 2, 2011

With NASAs shuttle program now defunct, the Rednecks decide to build their own big ass rocket. Staying true to their redneck roots, the team uses whatever they can find, including a farmers abandoned water tank and an old safety ladder, to craft a 700-pound rocket. But they have to buy the largest rocket engines you can get without being in the government.

Nov 16, 2011

After 170 killer tornados tear through the South in just two days, the Rocket City Rednecks build a "tornado-proof outhouse" that can withstand F5 winds.

Nov 16, 2011

The Rednecks put on a Fourth of July fireworks display using their own rocket fuel and a self-engineered computer program to remotely control the fireworks.

Nov 23, 2011

Energy prices are so high that the Boys want to find a way to create a home that's totally off-the-grid.

Nov 23, 2011

Using Pete and Travis's experience in military armor and Daddy and Michael's weaponry skills, the Rednecks create a fully-armored war-wagon mounted with a flame thrower and a giant potato cannon, suitable for hunting deer or chasing off invaders.

Nov 30, 2011

The Rednecks experiment with the physics of slingshots and trebuchets, then rig a "Super-treb" with a pulley system and weather balloo... that looks more like a massive slingshot than a launch vehicle.

Nov 30, 2011

Old sci-fi magazines once promised a Jetsons-style Hovercraft for everyone - but a redneck would prefer a "loungechair hovercraft.

Dec 7, 2011

The Stealth Helicopter used in the Bin Laden assault gets Michael thinking - can he avoid another speeding ticket with a "stealth vehicle" that should be completely invisible to radar?

Dec 7, 2011

Nothing is more redneck-y than a tailgate party, but Travis wants to use rocket science to turn the Ford Superduty into the ultimate in portable entertainment and food production for NASCAR.

Nov 29, 2012

The Rednecks enter a NASA contest with the hopes of launching a man-capable rocket 1 mile into the sky. The custom 20-foot-tall missile boasts two engines and about 3,000 pounds of thrust fueled by a mixture of ammonium perchlorate and aluminum. The goal: Once the rocket reaches 1 mile, explosive charges will shoot a parachute out and allow the capsule, and the test dummy, to float safely back to earth.

Nov 29, 2012

The Rednecks fly to L.A. to visit the garage where Jay keeps his personal collection of classic vehicles, and to help him build a steam catapult that will launch a car forward, just like an aircraft carrier catapult-launches jet fighters.

Dec 6, 2012

Travis draws inspiration from an experiment he did as a child, while Rog gets his idea from old western movies. Armed with toilet cleaner and welding gas, Team Travis and Team Rog face off, testing their best backwoods bomb creations on small outhouses. The reward? The winner gets to use his invention to blow up a friend's old barn.

Dec 6, 2012

Borrowing an 825-gallon barrel from a neighbor's farm, Travis and the boys fortify the pod walls with layers of plywood, laminate, heat-resistant tiles and of course... spray foam. Then they install car seats on the interior to support two passengers and paddle wheels on the sides... just in case they are swept out to sea. To test its' durability, Travis and Rog climb in and plan to complete a rugged obstacle course complete with a cement wall, sharp metal hurdles and a lake. But things don't go as planned, and the survival pod is really put to a survival test! "I screamed like a little girl," says Travis.

Dec 13, 2012

It's rare in the hobby rocket world, but a hybrid rocket has more control because it combines two forms of fuel - a solid and a gas.

Dec 13, 2012

The Rednecks create their own superhero suit from a pair of old vacuum cleaners, a barbecue grill and a bunch of spray foam. Their suit is flame - and bulletproof; it can climb walls like Spiderman and comes equipped with its own nonlethal net gun.

Dec 20, 2012

Boys will be boys, and boys like their toys. After racing radio-controlled toy cars in Daddy's driveway, the Rednecks decide to GO BIG and make full-sized versions using an old pickup truck and an RV camper.

Dec 20, 2012

No gunpowder or bullets in Alabama?! Travis thinks it's high time that modern weaponry evolved, after all, gunpowder is a thousand-year-old invention. He predicts that beam technology is the wave of the future.

Dec 27, 2012

Daddy contacts Hope for the Warriors, an organization that helps disabled veterans from Afghanistan and Iraq, to see if the Rednecks can lend a helping hand. They meet injured veteran Philip Labonte, who isn't able to go hunting anymore because he is in a wheelchair.

Dec 27, 2012

The Rednecks see if they can pull off an invention while Travis is gone: a one-man flying machine. First, they build a jetpack from a backpack and a large model rocket motor and strap the whole device onto a mannequin as a test pilot. During the test flight, the mannequin plows face-first into the ground, and Travis decides it's time to come home before someone gets hurt.

Jan 3, 2013

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, or DARPA, has issued a challenge to citizen scientists to build a drone that can do three things: (1) fly a couple of miles; (2) send back video; (3) fit into a backpack so a single soldier can carry it.

Jan 3, 2013

Papa John's CEO John Schnatter makes a guest appearance and challenges the Rednecks to design a pizza delivery bike that could be used in big cities. This business mogul wants more than just a pizza box strapped on the back of a 10-speed; he needs a motorized kitchen on wheels that can keep the pizzas warm and the sodas cold.

Jan 10, 2013

The Rednecks build an all-terrain transformer that's “more than meets the eye.” The weekend gets off to a rocky start when the prototype the guys nickname “Stupidious Prime” nearly breaks Travis' back.

Jan 10, 2013

No gunpowder or bullets… in Alabama?! Travis thinks its high time that modern weaponry evolved—after all, gunpowder is a thousand-year-old invention. He predicts that beam technology is the wave of the future. But building an actual ray weapon proves to be more challenging than Travis expected. After a failed experiment that destroys Mama Taylor's brand-new microwave, the guys ask a local mad scientist for help with high-voltage technology.

Jan 17, 2013

To prepare for a missile attack on Huntsville, the boys build a portable, bulletproof shelter. To test the innovative design, they head deep into the woods, deploy the shelter, install some motion lasers and ask a mob of local doomsday preppers to hunt 'em down.

Jan 17, 2013

Travis' brother has served multiple tours in Afghanistan and knows firsthand how heavy military-issued armor can be. So Travis decides to build his own version of a lightweight, full-body flak suit that could protect a soldier without limiting mobility. To put the design's mobility to the test, a retired drill sergeant puts Travis through civilian boot camp. Then, to prove the armor is light enough for a soldier to wear in combat, Travis straps on the suit and runs the full Marine Corps Marathon.